HivePlotter

Visualizing large networks is tricky; conventional graph layout such as force directed layouts are inconsistent, often resemble "hair balls" and can even suggest patterns which aren't actually there. Then Martin Krzywinski (Genome Science Center, Vancouver, BC) developed hive plots, a coherent network layout algorithm that places nodes using predefined rules. Hive plots facilitate the visualization of structural patterns in a network and the comparison of networks.

D3 is a JavaScript library used to produce beautiful and interactive graphics in HTML. Mike Bostockdeveloped a D3 library specifically for plotting beautiful hive plots. Unfortunately, writing in javascript code and D3 can be challenging, and often isn't part of a researcher's skill set. Yet many researchers' data is best analyzed and visualized using networks! From social networks to biological networks, all deserve beautiful visualizations. HivePlotter provides an easy to use interface to build hive plots.Check out the github wiki page for a step-by-step example of how to make a hive plot.

HivePlotter was developed using Python version 2.7. The NumPy package is currently required to run HivePlotter. Most modern browsers support SVG and thus D3 features. See http://caniuse.com/svg for more details.